[AMCC-News] Peace Talks in Macedonia Appear to Be Near Collapse

[Mentor Cana]

  "...Macedonian leaders verbally attacked Western mediators and rejected
   the package of reforms they had presented as the basis for a new
   political future in this ethnically divided country."

  "Pardew and Leotard responded to today's accusations in a joint statement
   that said their draft proposal "preserves the sovereignty, territorial
   integrity and unitary character of the Republic of Macedonia, retains
   Macedonian as the primary official language, and maintains central
   control of the police.""

http://washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A15777-2001Jul18.html

Peace Talks in Macedonia Appear to Be Near Collapse
Mediators Accused of Acting on Ethnic Albanians' Behalf

By Peter Finn
Washington Post Foreign Service
Thursday, July 19, 2001; Page A20

SKOPJE, Macedonia, July 18 -- Talks aimed at averting a civil war in
Macedonia were on the verge of collapse tonight after Macedonian leaders
verbally attacked Western mediators and rejected the package of reforms
they had presented as the basis for a new political future in this
ethnically divided country.

Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski said the Western draft deal, accepted by
ethnic Albanians, is "a blatant violation of Macedonia's internal affairs .
. . which would mean carving up the country if it is accepted."

He went on to say he was "concerned" by the "cowboy style" of the two
mediators, U.S. envoy James Pardew and European Union envoy Francois
Leotard. He said the envoys were acting as surrogates for ethnic Albanian
rebels who launched an insurgency five months ago to claim greater
political rights.

"Now the masks are off," said Georgievski, "and it's evident the terrorists
are supported by Western so-called democracies."

Even if the talks can be resurrected, the government appears to be stoking
the worst fears of its already radicalized constituency and preparing
public opinion for failure. President Boris Trajkovski said in a statement
tonight: "The reason we are here today is because a group of armed and
violent extremists are bent on using guns to achieve power, either
political or economic. Let us also be clear about one thing. If we cannot
come to an agreement today or tomorrow, there will not be a war."

A fragile cease-fire between the ethnic Albanian rebels, known as the
National Liberation Army, and Macedonian government forces continues to
hold, but there were reports of gunfire tonight in the largely ethnic
Albanian city of Tetovo. However, the Defense Ministry warned today that
the NATO-brokered cease-fire is fraying.

"It's possible there will be a new escalation of the conflict in the crisis
zones" in the north and northwest, said Marjan Djurovski, a ministry
spokesman. "The cease-fire is holding up with difficulty because
provocations by the Albanian terrorists who do not respect it are becoming
more and more frequent."

Both sides have been using the cease-fire to resupply and reposition their
forces in preparation for a new conflict, according to NATO sources.

Pardew and Leotard responded to today's accusations in a joint statement
that said their draft proposal "preserves the sovereignty, territorial
integrity and unitary character of the Republic of Macedonia, retains
Macedonian as the primary official language, and maintains central control
of the police."

In Washington, State Department spokesman Phillip Reeker said: "We do not
support armed insurgency, we do not support violence. . . . We've made very
clear that we support the territorial integrity of Macedonia, we've been a
strong friend and ally of Macedonia since its independence over a decade
ago, and we have tried to help as much as possible in getting the parties
to pursue a peaceful negotiation to come up with a political solution to
Macedonia's problems."

Macedonian officials are balking at a provision that would make Albanian a
second official language, although not on the same constitutional level as
Macedonian, Western officials insist.

"It's a tragedy," said one Western diplomat tonight, dismissing the
Macedonian objections as primarily emotional. The Macedonians "get almost
everything they want and give up very little in return."

At a meeting of political leaders and the Western mediators today, ethnic
Albanian leader Arben Xhaferi walked out after listening to political
attacks on himself and his community by Macedonian officials, sources said.

All week, talks had been limited to four major political parties -- two
ethnic Albanian and two Macedonian -- but at today's meeting, called by
Trajkovski, all parties in parliament were invited. And Trajkovski
presented them with the original Western proposal, not reflecting the
substantial revisions it has undergone in the last 12 days. That suggests
that, for the president at least, the process is back where it began,
despite more than a week of intensive negotiations.

The original document is unacceptable to ethnic Albanians who insist on
full language rights.

NATO Secretary General George Robertson and EU foreign policy chief Javier
Solana, who were expected here Thursday to push the negotiations forward,
have canceled their trip because of the impasse, Western sources said. And
Pardew and Leotard's position is becoming increasingly tenuous as senior
officials here use the local media to attack them.

Macedonian officials have nonetheless asked Pardew and Leotard to continue
to work in the capital, and the two are willing to stay because their
departure could serve as "a trigger" for renewed fighting, Western
officials said.

2001 The Washington Post Company